


100 Merthur Drabbles

by QueerNerdofCamelot



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: 100 Drabble Challenge, Angst, Canon Era, Drabble Collection, Drabbles, High School AU, M/M, Prank Wars, Reincarnation, SO SORRY, Sadness, Schmoop, Spoilers, but probably some modern stuff too, cheesy tropes, depends on the prompt tbh, i didn't mean for the sadnesss, kid!Merthur, my more fluffy and romantic then I meant it to be tbh
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-13
Updated: 2016-11-25
Packaged: 2018-05-01 11:26:50
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 6,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5204033
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueerNerdofCamelot/pseuds/QueerNerdofCamelot
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's all in the title really. 100 drabbles inspired by 100 words. I'm hoping to update everyday.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. List

**Author's Note:**

> So the rules of this challenge are simple. There's 100 words, and you have to write a drabble inspired by each word. Here's the list.

1\. Beauty

2\. Love

3\. Dream

4\. Haunted

5\. Memory

6\. Fragile

7\. Celebration

8\. Secret

9\. Promise

10\. Innocence

11\. Moonlight

12\. Whisper

13\. Echo

14\. Jealousy

15\. Passion

16\. Lies

17\. Regrets

18\. Trust

19\. Revenge

20\. Beach

21\. Midnight

22\. Confessions

23\. Crush

24\. Chocolate

25\. Alone

26\. Rain

27\. Letters

28\. Cold

29\. Dark

30\. Addiction

31\. Flower

32\. Snow

33\. Temptation

34\. Autumn

35\. Unity

36\. Hurt

37\. Truth

38\. Rogue

39\. Champagne

40\. Tulips

41\. Glitter

42\. Fearless

43\. Proposal

44\. Together

45\. Heartbroken

46\. Loss

47\. Holiday

48\. Roses

49\. Sparkle

50\. Magic

51\. Fire

52\. Thunder

53\. Vanilla

54\. Broken

55\. Forever

56\. Imagination

57\. Silence

58\. Fade

59\. Shine

60\. Bright

61\. Rumours

62\. Bells

63\. Red

64\. Doubt

65\. Always

66\. Perfect

67\. Butterfly

68\. Kiss

69\. Subtle

70\. Nightmare

71\. Mistletoe

72\. Locket

73\. Mercy

74\. Poppy

75\. Fall

76\. Key

77\. Hatred

78\. Rainbow

79\. Diamond

80\. Drunk

81\. Balloons

82\. Tears

83\. Sunshine

84\. Cinnamon

85\. Lonely

86\. Mask

87\. Pebbles

88\. Surprise

89\. Gravity

90\. Wild

91\. Snow

92\. Missing

93\. Intense

94\. Flying

95\. Forest

96\. Betrayal

97\. Apologies

98\. Snapshot

99\. Taboo

100\. Horizon


	2. Beauty

Merlin stood on the edge of the cliff that overlooked the valley, his mouth hanging open in an expression of awe. The journey here had been tiresome, several hours in the making, and at night no less, because Arthur had been insistent that they arrive promptly at dawn. Merlin had -naturally- complained the whole way there, which had only caused the prince to insult him, although this was not an unusual occurrence in Merlin's life.

Now, however, as Merlin watched the sun crest over the hills, warming his skin and illuminating everything below them with golden light, he understood Arthur had been so entranced with this place. Merlin had never seen anything quite like it; the sky was a burnt-orange, and the first light of morning caught on the clouds, making them appear as if on fire. The mist rolled softly over the treetops, and the hills themselves were black silhouettes against the luminous sky. The air smelled of nostalgia, of spring, and of new life, and as Merlin listened to the chirping of birds who were just beginning to wake up all around them, he struggled to find a word that could describe the scene laid out before him.

"So, what do you think, Merlin?" Arthur asked, his voice was soft, as if carried on the early morning breeze. "Was it worth the journey after all?"

"Yeah." Merlin said, turning to look at his prince. Arthur stood there, his hair seeming to glow as it caught the golden light of dawn, giving him an almost ethereal look. He grinned broadly at his manservant, and as his crystal blue eyes shone with happy light, Merlin found the word he was looking for.

"It's beautiful."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yeah... This got a lot fluffier than I meant it to, for which I apologize...  
> Just kidding, I would never apologize for Merlin and Arthur watching the sunrise together.


	3. Love

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updating early because I'm busy all day tomorrow.
> 
> This was quite a bit longer than I meant it to be... 627 words is long for a drabble, right?  
> Anyway, there's actually a little story behind this one. Basically the 'thank you' in the last episode always seemed off to me, so this has been my head canon for the scene for a long time. 
> 
> So sorry for the sadness and all that...

Merlin and Arthur stumbled out of the woods and into the clearing, the king hanging from the sorcerer’s side like a dead weight. Up ahead in the distance, Arthur could see a lake, wide and crystal blue, with mist rolling over its surface like clouds that had fallen to earth. At the center of that lake, shrouded in mist, and silhouetted black against the grey sky, was the Isle of the Blessed. Lonely. That was the first word that popped into Arthur’s head when he laid eyes on what would be his salvation, if only he could make it just a little further. It looks so lonely.

Then Arthur was falling, perhaps it was the weight of his armour, perhaps the sharp pain in his chest that came from the blade slowly inching its way closer and closer to his heart. Or maybe he was just tired, Gods, he certainly felt tired. No matter what the case, Arthur was certain he couldn’t take even one more step. He was vaguely aware of Merlin trying to pull him to his feet, but there was no point, Arthur knew he wasn’t getting back up.

“I’m not going to lose you.” Merlin said, but Arthur could tell he hardly believed his own words; it was over.

“Just-” Arthur hardly recognized the harsh whisper as his own voice, he could feel more blood spilling from the wound, warm, sticky liquid dripping across the skin beneath his chainmail. There wasn’t a lot of time left. He clasped his hand over Merlin’s, which was resting on his chest. “Just hold me.”

And for once, Merlin did as he was told, wrapping his arms around Arthur and shifting the position so that he could look down into his king’s face. Arthur could see tears welling up behind Merlin’s eyes, Gods, his eyes were so blue… Arthur was going to miss those eyes. Over the past two days he had come to realize just how he felt about his servant, it seemed that upon learning everything his manservant had done for him, years of oppressed feelings had come welling to the surface, and now Arthur only wished that he had more time -perhaps another lifetime- to spend with his friend. He wished he could do it over again, and maybe he would get it right this time.

“There’s something I want to say.” Arthur began, because after all Merlin had done for him, he deserved to know.

“You’re not going to say goodbye-” Merlin began.

“No.” Arthur cut him off. “Everything you’ve done… I know now. For me, for Camelot… For the kingdom you helped me build.” It’s getting harder to speak, but Arthur pushes on, he needs to get the words out before it’s too late.

“You’d have done it without me.” Merlin shook his head.

“Maybe.” Arthur said, but it was a lie, he was nothing without Merlin, he knew that now more than ever. “I want to say something… Something I’ve never said to you before.” But as he met Merlin’s eyes, his next words died on his lips, because he simply couldn’t do it. It didn’t matter for Arthur, he would be dead in a matter of minutes, perhaps less, but Merlin? Merlin would be forced to live on with the knowledge of what could have been. No matter how badly Arthur wanted tell his friend the truth, he found that he simply wasn’t selfish enough to do so. But he had already built up to it, so he had to say something. “Thank you.” He whispered instead.

And as Arthur Pendragon’s eyes drifted closed for the last time, there were three words that he’d never get the chance to say bouncing around in his skull.

I love you.


	4. Dream

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Not sure how I feel about this one, it didn't really turn out how I wanted it too. Anyway, this one's a little sad, depending on how you look at it. Not as sad as the last one though, I promise.

Arthur knew he was dreaming, it wasn't the first time he's had this dream after all, and he was certain it would not be the last. The thing was, it followed the same pattern every time; everything was perfect, and then he realized he was dreaming, and shortly thereafter he woke up.

But he didn't want to wake up, not yet.

Here he was, laying in bed, just like he would be in the waking world, only, in the dream he wasn't alone. Merlin was there at his side, curled up against him, with their legs tangled together and his head resting on the prince's chest. The curtain was open just a crack, allowing the golden sun to stream through, casting ripples of light across the servant's pale skin. 

Merlin -the dream Merlin- looked up at him, smiling sleepily. "Morning, sleepyhead." The servant said, his tone caught somewhere between taunting and endearing.

"Morning." Arthur said, beaming down at the other man. The world was beginning to go fuzzy at the edges, blurring into blackness, and Arthur knew he didn't have a lot of time left in this dream world. "You know I love you, right?"

"Of course I do." Dream-Merlin laughs. "I love you too, you prat."

"You know, you can't address me like that." Arthur teases.

"Really?" Dream-Merlin raised a single, dark eyebrow at him. "And what are you going to do to stop me?"

Arthur didn't say anything, just leaned forwards and planted a kiss on the servants lips. He knew it wasn't real, but that didn't stop him from getting that stupid little flutter in his chest when it happened. A second later he was being ripped into consciousness by the sound of the curtains sliding across their rods, causing light to stream into his eyes.

"Morning, sleepyhead!" Merlin called cheerily from where he stood at the window on the other side of the room. Arthur glared daggers at Merlin, wishing he could've at least chosen some slightly different wording. He wasn't really angry with his servant, if anything, he was just sad. Sad because he was staring at the one thing he wanted more than anything else in the world, but could never have.

Maybe when he was king, things would be different. But deep down he knew they wouldn't be.

It was just another dream.


	5. Haunted

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry about the lack of update; been super busy. This one's a little sad too tbh...

Merlin jerked awake, his blue eyes flashing gold in the darkness, sending books and other objects flying off of the shelves. This was not the first time this had happened, and he had long since stopped keeping delicate items in his room. He switched on the lamp, that singular light source seeming to chase away the darkness all around him.

It was 2012. It had been over a thousand years since Arthur’s death, and in all of that time, not a day had passed that Merlin didn’t think of his king. The dreams had always been there. Sometimes they were few and far between, and other times they would come for several consecutive nights, without allowing even one day’s break for a proper night’s sleep. Sometimes they were more of a memory, flashes of conversations, the events leading up to Arthur’s inevitable downfall, and all that Merlin had failed to do to stop it. Other times they were not. Other times they were other, imagined scenarios, set in eras all throughout history, each telling a story that had never come to pass. In all of these dreams, however, there was one common factor; no matter what Merlin did, all paths seemed to lead to Arthur’s death. Sometimes the king would be hit by a car, other times he was stabbed in the street. There was even one such dream, where Arthur lived a content life, only to die of stomach cancer at age forty-five. Every time, Merlin woke up feeling partially responsible for the king’s death. He knew it was ridiculous, of course. He knew that even in his own time, fate had chosen Arthur’s path, and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Despite all of this, he still blamed himself.

Recently, however, Arthur had stepped out of Merlin’s dreams, and into his reality. It wasn’t really Arthur, of course, more like the memory of him being projected into Merlin’s waking life. He saw Arthur everywhere; in the faces of people passing; in the back corner of every smoky bar; in the shadows of every dark alley. There had even been one or two occurrences in which Merlin had been looking in the mirror and seen the king standing at his shoulder, only to turn around and find himself very much alone.

He was beginning to wonder if perhaps, after all these years, he’d finally lost his mind. It seemed the most logical conclusion.

Maybe he was simply doomed to be haunted by the memories of a love that never was. Maybe until his king returned to him.

Maybe forever.


	6. Memory

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happier... ish?

Water, there was water everywhere, but above the water was a light, he could see it just above him, and he swam towards it. His lungs felt like they were about to burst from holding his breath, but he pushed on, not stopping until he finally broke the surface of the water. Then he was gasping for air, and as his eyes opened, he saw the world for what may have been the first time. It was night, and he was in the middle of a lake, the full moon overhead seeming to turn the water into a pool of liquid silver. He swam quickly to shore, and heaved himself, shivering and naked, onto the sand.

As he lay on his back, catching his breath, he tried to remember who he was or where he had come from. He knew some things, he knew how to walk, and talk, and apparently swim. He knew the names of most things around him, and he knew close to a hundred ways in which to kill someone with a sword. And yet, he didn’t know his own name, or even what he looked like. He stared across the beach. It was familiar in a way he couldn’t quite explain, like he’d been here before. At the center of the lake was an island, on which stood the crumbling ruins of a castle. 

He walked over to the lake, looking down at his reflection in the water. He vaguely recognized the face staring back as his own, though it was paler than he would’ve imagined, and his hair was wet, so he couldn’t really tell what colour it was. Blonde, maybe? He didn’t even know what colour his hair was, never mind his own name.

Down the beach he could see a house, it didn’t look like any house he’d ever seen before, but that was the only thing it could be. He made his way towards it, hoping against hope that he would be able to get inside. He tried all the doors and windows and found them locked tight, he knew what came next, he picked up a rock and smashed through the window, reaching in to unlock the door. He hated how the sound seemed to echo in the silence. No one stirred in the house, perhaps no one was home. Upon entering the home, he confirmed his suspicions, it was obvious that people lived here, but they didn’t seem to be here now. This was good, as he didn’t think he’d be able to come up with a reasonable explanation as to why he was in their home… naked.

The man crept up the stairs and began to push open doors. In one room, he found the clothes of a man similar in size to him, they were different from any clothes he’d worn before, but he supposed he didn’t have a lot of choice in the matter. He dressed quickly, briefly considering the option of spending a night in the house, but quickly thought better of it and rushed out the door.

That night, he fell asleep under a bridge, shivering and impossibly hungry.

He dreamed that night, it was odd, as he’d never -to his memory- dreamed before in his life. It was mostly flashes. A sharp pain in his chest, a pale face staring down at him, all messy dark hair, and vibrant blue eyes. And words too.

“I’m not going to lose you.”

The man wakes with a start, a name falls from his lips before he’s even fully awake. A name that, though he cannot remember ever pronouncing it before, is impossibly familiar to him.

“Merlin.” It was the first time he could recall hearing his own voice, and that really was a strange though. A stranger thought, however, was that, despite not being able to remember his own name, the name of this…. Merlin, had rolled off of his tongue with such ease.

That was when he decided that the best way to get his memories back was to find this man. He climbed out from under the tunnel, staring out horizon. There was a small tugging sensation in his chest, something pulling him east, towards the rising son. Trusting his gut, the man started walking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gonna do a two part thing with the one for tomorrow. There will be a happy ending, don't worry.


	7. Fragile

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Continuation of last chapter.
> 
> I kinda cheated a little on this one, also it would appear I am absolutely terrible at writing short drabbles, but happy ending so yay!

Merlin stood in the coffee shop, just like he did every other day. But today, something was different. He felt it, like a buzzing excitement in his magic, something was about to happen. Something amazing. He was facing away from the register, making a drink when he heard the -oddly familiar- sound of a throat being cleared behind him. Merlin spun around to face the customer, and for a moment, he thought he was seeing things. It was Arthur, he was sure of it, except it couldn’t be. Arthur was dead, and had been for a long time. Yet there he was, standing across the counter and smirking at him.

The mug slipped from his fingers, shattering on the floor, but he didn’t move, just stared blankly at the man in front of him.

“I’ve been looking for you.” The man -Arthur- said with a small, nervous smile.

“Arthur… It’s not-” Merlin’s voice cracked, and he coughed a little to clear his throat. “How are you here?”

“Can we talk?” Arthur asked.  
“Merlin?” It was Alice, a girl who worked with him in the shop, speaking to him from somewhere behind him. “Merlin, are you okay?”

Merlin shook himself, turning to look at her, he knew how he must look, pale and quivering ever so slightly. “I’m fine.” He said, his voice cracking in a manner that sounded very much the opposite of fine. He stooped to pick up the shattered remnants of the cup, cursing under his breath as he nicked his finger on the sharp edge of the porcelain, drawing blood. He sucked his finger reflexively into his mouth. 

“Merlin.” Alice -who reminded him quite a lot of Gwen- said, pulling him away from the mess. “I’ve got Jerry and Pat to help me out here, why don’t you take an early break, it’s clear you’ve got something to deal with.”

Merlin thanked her profusely for her kindness before walking around the counter, and heading quickly towards the door, Arthur following close behind him.

6 months later

“Merlin.” The voice spoke softly in his ear. “Merlin, it’s time to wake up.”

Merlin groaned, burying his face deeper into his pillow. The pillow shook with laughter, and Merlin turned to glare at him. “You’re a terrible pillow, you know.” He said crossly.

“I know.” Arthur smiled down at him, and Merlin couldn’t stay mad at that face, he adjusted his position so they were closer together and planted a soft kiss on the former king’s lips. After Arthur’s memories had returned, it hadn’t taken long for them to fall into each other’s arms. Merlin supposed it had something to do with the fact that they had already been head over heels in love back in Camelot, and too stubborn to admit it.

“I love you.” Arthur said, his lips brushing softly over Merlin’s as they pulled apart.

“I love you too, prat.” Merlin said, and then kissed him again.


	8. Celebration

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really short... sorry.
> 
> Happy though :)

Merlin was beaming as he sat at the table beside his king, it was everything he’d ever dreamed of, and so much more. Arthur was alive and well, magic had been made legal in Camelot, and to top it all off, Merlin had been made court sorcerer; chief advisor to the king in all things magical. It was a position that had never been held before.

People all around the table were smiling and celebrating. It had taken some time for many of them to adjust to the idea that Merlin had been lying to them all of these years, but they had quickly come to the realization that, magic or no, Merlin was still the same man he had been all along, and they loved him for that.

Merlin leaned his head back against the chair, he didn’t think he could be more happy than he was right then. Then he felt the warmth of Arthur’s hand resting on his knee, a touch that was accompanied by the sort of smile that suggested the night would not end when the celebrations did…

At least not for the two of them.


	9. Secrets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merlin is terrible at secrets.

Merlin was very good at keeping secrets, or at least he thought he was. He prided himself in his ability to hide things from everyone around him, particularly Arthur. Merlin spent nearly every waking hour with the price, and yet, two things remained well and truly hidden.

1\. Merlin had magic.  
2\. Merlin was utterly, impossibly, stupidly in love with Arthur. (Even Gaius didn’t know this one, though his mum had seemed to suspect it).

However, when -after yet another very narrow escape from death- Arthur grabbed him by the neckerchief and pulled him into a kiss, Merlin was shocked, and more than a little confused by what he should do. It was only made worse when Arthur growled out the words;

“Kiss me back, you idiot, it’s obvious you’re in love with me.”

Merlin was shocked, how could Arthur possibly know. “How did you-?” he started to ask.

“Oh come on Merlin.” Arthur shook his head. “You really are terrible at keeping secrets, you know that?”

Merlin was taken aback. “I’ll have you know, that I am very good at keeping secrets!” He cried, indignant.

“Please.” Arthur scoffed. “I’ve known about this for months, and don’t even get me started on the whole magic thing.”

“You know abo-” Arthur cut him off.

“Can we talk about this later?” He asked. And before Merlin could answer, Arthur was kissing him again, and this time, Merlin kissed him back.


	10. Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short one.

“Arthur?” Merlin’s voice was barely a whisper in the darkness, his face resting on the pillow, just inches away from the princes’, but even that felt too far.

“Yes, Merlin?” Arthur said, inching closer to his servant so the tips of their noses just brushed.

“Will you still stay with me, even when you’re king?”

There was a brief pause, and then Arthur pulled Merlin flush against him, planting a kiss on the tip of his nose. “Of course. I’ll always love you, you know that.”

“Promise?” Merlin says softly.

“Promise.” Arthur kisses the sorcerer softly, and then the two drift off into sleep, tangled up in each other’s arms.


	11. Innocence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Umm... Not really sure what happened here. Innocence made me think of children, and so yeah...  
> Kindergarten Merthur.

Merlin was sitting cross-legged on the carpet, playing with the blocks, he was trying to see how many he could stack before it fell down. His record was eight.

Suddenly Val came running over and kicked over his block tower, sending the colourful pieces of wood scattering all across the floor. Val started to laugh at him, and Merlin felt tears spring up in his eyes.

“Hey!” A voice calls out. Merlin looked up to see another boy trotting across the classroom. His ash-blonde hair was sticking up in tufts and his chest puffed out dramatically. Merlin thought the boy looked like a brave knight from a storybook, although, that would make him the princess, and Merlin wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to be a girl. “Leave him alone.” he said, sticking his lower lip out defiantly.

Val -who was a bully, but wasn’t really all that brave- scurried quickly away.

“Thank you.” Merlin ducked his head shyly.

The boy smiled in return, helping Merlin collect the blocks.

“I’m Merlin.” He added. “What’s your name?”

“Arthur.” The boy replied.

“Do you wanna be my friend?” Merlin asked.

Arthur nodded vigorously in response. Together they built a tower of blocks that was taller than either of them could count to.


	12. Moonlight

Merlin stood by the window. He was staring out at the kingdom, it looked so different at night, all shadows and secrets. Almost magical.

From Arthur's position on the bed, Merlin was what looked magical. Etherial even. The moonlight washed over him, making his pale skin look as though it had been carved from marble. His dark hair gleamed silver, and his expression was wistful as he looked out into the night.

"Merlin." Arthur's voice was barely a whisper in the darkness of the room.

Merlin turned his head, the moonlight dancing in his eyes, making them appear almost luminous.

"Come back to bed." The prince spread his arms invitingly, and Merlin sighed, crossing the room, light on his feet in a way that always surprised Arthur, knowing the clumsy oaf Merlin so often was during the day. He crawled back into the bed, curling up against Arthur's side, slipping his cold feet between Arthur's calves, as if stealing his warmth.

They fell asleep just like that, bathed in moonlight, and clinging to each other in a way that was almost desperate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know with this one...
> 
> Also, really sorry it's been so long, I'm a terrible person.


	13. Whisper

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Arthur and Merlin whispering back and forth while hiding from bandits under a bush.
> 
> Dialogue only.

“Arthur?”

“What is it Merlin?”

“Do you think they’re still out there?”

“I don’t know, I can’t see anything…. Is that you’re hand?”

“...”

“Merlin?”

“Sorry, it was an accident.”

“Oh, sure it was…”

“Just shut up, they’ll hear you.”

“Fine.”

“...”

“You know I wouldn’t mind, if it wasn’t an accident.”

“Wouldn’t you?”

“Not at all.”

“Well maybe next time it won’t be.”

“I’ll hold you to that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Where was Merlin's hand? ;)


	14. Echo

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kinda sad again, I blame the Merlin writers completely.

Sometimes Merlin could still hear Arthur, calling out to him yelling his name in the way he used to when he was particularly peeved. He heard it when he was out, walking down crowded streets or sitting in pubs full of rowdy patrons.

Sometimes it was a whisper, a soft murmur of reverence. It was the same way Arthur would say his name just after he’d kissed him, when his eyes would lock on the sorcerer’s like was the only thing that mattered in all the world. Merlin heard this when he was alone; reading, or watching telly, or falling asleep, always it came, a small sound right beside his ear, reminding him of what he had lost.

He heard other things too; heard Arthur laughing in the dark corners of his house, a sound that made him simultaneously sad and happy.

Once he had heard the king say “I love you”; a soft sound in the darkness that had kept Merlin awake at night for weeks afterwards, wondering how long he’d need to wait for his love to return to him.

Of course, Merlin knew none of these echoes were the real thing; his King was dead, had been for a long time. His mind was playing tricks on him after all these years. And yet, he had hope, a flickering candle flame in his chest, saying perhaps soon he would see Arthur again.


	15. Jealousy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cracky with a side of fluff.
> 
> Jealous!Arthur is my weakness.

Arthur knew he was being stupid; it really was pointless to be jealous. However, when he saw Merlin; smiling and laughing raucously at something Gwaine had just said, he felt a twinge of something in his chest. It wasn’t nice, in fact it was rather unpleasant. He watched, his top lip curling slightly as Gwaine wrapped an arm around Merlin’s shoulders, saying something that had the manservant shaking his head, grinning broadly at the knight.

“Merlin!” Arthur called out, watching as the other man rolled his eyes before walking over towards him.

“Yes, sire?”

“I need your help removing these.” Arthur extended an arm, gesturing to his gauntlets.

“You can’t take them off yourself?” Merlin quirked an eyebrow at him.

“Shut up Merlin.” Arthur said as the servant began to undo the leather straps.

Merlin met Arthur’s eye, smirking slightly. “That’s not what this is really about, is it?.”

“Of course it is.” Arthur responded briskly as he removed the first gauntlet, tossing it aside. “What else would it be?”

Merlin glanced over his shoulder to where Gwaine was now laughing with Percival as the two ate their stew, then looked back at Arthur, smiling slyly. “You know he’s just a friend, right?”

“I’m not jealous, Merlin.” Arthur’s lower lip jutted out in a half-pout.

“I never said you were.” Merlin took a step forward, lacing his fingers with Arthur’s and hiding their hands between their bodies. “All I’m saying is that Gwaine’s a good mate, but that’s all he is.” He paused, chewing his lower lip before looking up at Arthur through dark lashes. “I only have eyes for one man.”

“And he only has eyes for you.” Arthur responded, and Merlin stepped back then, having removed the second gauntlet, and not wanting to raise suspicion.

Hours later; when the sun had sunk below the horizon, and all the men were fast asleep, Arthur held Merlin tightly in his arms, kissing him deeply while the two hid beneath the blanket of shadows brought on by the night.


	16. Passion

It was always best after a fight. One minute, Merlin would be so incredibly angry, Arthur really could be such a prat, and the two would bicker, and yell, and snipe at each other until they seemed ready to kill each other. Then the next second, Arthur would have Merlin pinned against a wall and be kissing him like there was nothing else in the entire world. It was rough and passionate, lips bitten until they bled, bruises left in the shapes of fingerprints on thighs and shoulders, hands tangling in hair and tugging painfully.

Afterwards, when they’d lay in Arthur’s bed, sweaty and tangled up, both in the sheets and in each other, catching their breath, that was a different kind of passion. Arthur would lay, Merlin’s head pillowed on his chest, and he’d smile down at the servant, an affectionate light in his eyes as he stroked a hand over the other man’s jaw. “You know I love you, right?” He’d say in that soft, quiet voice that was so different from the one he used when addressing his people, or commanding troops.

“I know.” Melin would smile up at him. “And I love you too, you prat.”

Then Arthur would kiss him softly, a gentle reverence, and the two would fall asleep tangled up in each other.


	17. Lies

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my god, long freaking time since I updated....  
> Really sorry, you guys.  
> Sad one again today :/

“I’m a sorcerer.” Arthur never knew three words could send him reeling in such a way; had never imagined that five insignificant syllables could turn his life around so completely. “I have magic.”

The king struggled to protest, struggled to keep faith in his servant, begging for Merlin to please stop messing around, now really wasn’t the time after all. But Merlin’s eyes were wet with tears and deadly serious, and Arthur knew that this was in fact as far from a game as was possible for it to be.

Then Merlin showed him, his eyes glowing like the sun as he conjured a dragon from the flames beside them, and Arthur felt something inside of him shatter into a thousand pieces. Like a vase, thrown to the floor in some mindless rage or other. Only this time, Merlin wasn’t there to sweep up the fragments, because his loyal friend and servant was the one who had broken it in the first place. It all came together in that moment; all the odd coincidences, all the times in which the king had had his backside very narrowly saved by some mysterious force. And always there was Merlin, a stumbling and incompetent manservant. Except… Perhaps he had not been the clumsy oaf Arthur always assumed him to be. Perhaps it had been Merlin all along.

It wasn’t the fact that Merlin had magic that hurt him, no, Arthur could live with that, surely there were some good sorcerers in the world. What truly stung was the fact that, despite being his best friend for nearly ten years, Merlin had never thought to tell him, instead choosing to lie and to keep his true self a secret from those closest to him. It was as though he had never trusted Arthur at all, and that hurt far more than the blow of Mordred’s sword, far more than anything Arthur had felt in his life.

“Leave me.” The words spilled from Arthur’s lips like wine from a goblet knocked over by a careless elbow. He wasn’t sure why his mind kept conjuring images of messes, but perhaps it was rather because this whole situation was one big mess. He could see the hurt in Merlin’s blue eyes, and a part of him wanted to take the words back as soon as they were thrown out there. But the other part -the part that won out in the grand scheme of things- got some strange pleasure from hurting the other man in that same way he had been hurt. 

So he left the sentence hanging heavy in the chill night air. Didn’t apologize, or even think to wait for a response before turning away. He listened to the sound of Merlin’s receding footsteps -probably heading to fetch more firewood- before resting his head on the log and letting his tears fall.


	18. Regrets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we're angsting off again!

Merlin had so many regrets. He had lived a long time, and there were hundreds of things he wished he could take back. Yet out of all his many regrets, there was one that plagued him day and night.

Arthur.

No matter how many times he thought about it, he always came to the same conclusion. It was Merlin’s fault Arthur had died. He had known what was going to happen, and by trying to stop it, he had only screwed things up worse. Gaius and Gwen had both said there was nothing he could have done, but even a thousand years in the future, Merlin still blamed himself for all of it.

In the end, it was Merlin’s fault, and nothing anyone said could convince him otherwise.

Merlin sighed, pouring himself another drink to drown the guilt.


	19. Trust

The bond between master and servant was incredibly important. Although it wasn’t necessary to get along with, or even really like one’s servant (these were added bonuses in the case of Arthur and Merlin, because as much as the king liked to pretend he hated his manservant, this just wasn’t the case). There was one thing though, that was an integral part of the bond between any servant and the one they served, and that was trust. In his lifetime Arthur had seen many a nobleman fall due simply to servants who weren’t trustworthy. There were servants who stole, and there were servants who betrayed their masters, and all manner of other criminal and immoral things.

Arthur was all too aware that he had been quite lucky when it came to finding a loyal servant. As much as Merlin was often incompetent in ways that occasionally bordered on stupid, he made up for it by being fiercely loyal, and had proved time and time again that he would gladly give his life for Arthur’s. When it came down to it, there was no one in the world Arthur trusted more than Merlin, and he knew without a doubt that his friend would not lie to him.

At least not about anything that mattered.


	20. Revenge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Prompt seems negative, but this is straight up fluff and crack, you're welcome. 
> 
> Also it's a high school au, this one.

Merlin met Arthur on his first day at Camelot high and it had gone just about as terribly as it possibly could.

Merlin had been racing down the hallway in a hurry to get to his next class -head down, not really looking where he was going- when he had run into Arthur, who had promptly shoved him in response, calling him an idiot or the like. Merlin had responded by calling him a prat, after that things had gotten heated, ending up with the two of them practically hurling insults at one another in the hallway. Merlin supposed clotpole wasn’t his best insult, but Arthur had definitely blown the whole thing way out of proportion. At the end of it all, he had stormed off in a huff, saying something about Merlin having just made the worst mistake of his life. Merlin had hardly taken him seriously.

The week after that Merlin had opened his locker only to be overwhelmed by a flood of five-hundred ping-pong balls, all with the word clotpole written on them in black sharpie. When he had turned to see Arthur leaning against a locker on the other side of the hall, smirking at him, he had vowed revenge.

Three days later Arthur found his car covered in sticky notes, each with the word prat written on them in bold letters. This was the point at which everything really started to go to hell.

Over the next three weeks, Merlin had his pants stolen from the changeroom and suspended from the flagpole, Arthur had soy sauce poured in his coca-cola -four times-, Merlin had his hand-sanitizer replaced with lube -that had been a mess-, Merlin superglued Arthur’s lock closed, Arthur had filled Merlin’s shoes with chocolate pudding, Merlin put fake tanner in Arthur’s sunscreen -his skin had been streaky for quite some time after this one-, and so on and so forth until finally Merlin found a note on his locker one day.

"Truce?

Meet me in the music room. 3:40.

~Arthur"

Merlin had stared at the note for a long time, trying to decipher whether or not it was some kind of trick. In the end though, his curiosity was too much for him and he went willingly.

And that was how Merlin ended up pinned to the music room wall with Arthur Pendragon’s tongue down his throat, and really hadn’t they been building to this the whole time?

Four months later Merlin was greeted by five-hundred more ping-pong balls, each with the word Prom? written on them in black sharpie. He turned around to find Arthur standing behind him holding a rose, smiling almost nervously. Merlin pulled the other boy in for a kiss, pulling away after a long moment to murmur a breathless ‘yes’ against Arthur’s smiling lips.


	21. Beach

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M BACK GUYS!!!!
> 
> Sorry I've been gone so long, things have been super hectic, a lot of family stuff I'm not really gonna get into, anyway here's the next chapter :)))

Merlin grinned to himself as he sat in the shadows on the beach, hiding from the sun that seemed to hate him, always burning his pale skin rather than turning it the warm golden-brown that Arthur and the knights always became during summer.

Arthur and his knights who were currently shirtless and running around on the shore of the lake, splashing each other like a bunch of idiot children. Certainly not the way the future king of Camelot should be behaving. Still it was nice to see him relaxing, with all that was going on in the kingdom right now -Morgana’s betrayal, and the subsequent toll it had taken on Uther- Arthur was under a lot of stress, and Merlin was more than a little worried about him. But now Arthur was smiling, head thrown back in laughter as he splashed water into Gwaine’s face, making the knights dark hair hang down into his eyes, stringy and unbecoming.

Then Arthur suddenly turned to him and smiled the brightest smile in the whole world. “Come on Merlin!” He teased. “Don’t tell me you’re afraid of a little water!”

“Not the water.” Merlin called back. “Though I am a bit cautious about the people planning on shoving me under it as soon as I get close.” 

“Not our fault you make yourself such an easy target!” Arthur retorted.

Merlin’s rebuttal was a murmured spell that sent Arthur sprawling face-first into the water.


	22. Midnight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Modern AU, friends-to-lovers, New Years Eve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy again!
> 
> I actually wrote this the day before yesterday but I was too tired to post it, and then yesterday I had my girlfriend over so things have been crazy busy.
> 
> Anyway, enjoy :)

FIVE! FOUR! THREE! TWO! ONE!

Before Merlin could shout zero Arthur was grabbing him by the scarf and pulling him forwards into a kiss. Merlin’s heart fluttered and he kissed Arthur back, because this was what their friendship had always been leading up to. 

Fireworks exploded, and when Merlin pulled back he saw Arthur illuminated in shades of red and green and gold.

“I love you.” The words spilled from his lips before he could think better of it.

Arthur simply smiled, pulling him close so that their lips brushed over each other as he spoke. “I love you too, Merlin.”

And together they entered the New Year having never been happier.


	23. Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Canon AU
> 
> After Arthur becomes king magic is made legal and Merlin prepares to tell his king his secret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kinda open to interpretation this one.

It wasn’t easy. Of course it wasn’t, Merlin had gone into this full-well knowing that it wouldn’t be. But right now, sitting opposite Arthur and preparing to actually tell him the thing he’d been keeping secret for all these years…

Well that was the most terrifying thing he could imagine.

But things were different now. Arthur was king, not Uther, and magic had been made legal throughout the land. So there was no real reason to hide this anymore, not really.

Merlin only hoped that his friend would understand; that Arthur would forgive him for hiding this from him for all these years. And with that he opened his mouth and began to tell his story.


	24. Crush

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Modern AU, office setting, featuring a very sassy Morgana and a very oblivious Arthur.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's been so long you guys, things have been really hectic. I don't really know what to say for this one...?

Everyone in the office knew Arthur had it bad, Morgana better than anyone.

It was obvious if you took but a moment to look at the way he pined, always watching Merlin with that perplexed, puppyish expression that made him look so utterly moronic it was almost cute. When it wasn’t completely obnoxious, of course.

Not to mention the fact that he never shut up about him, seriously, he was about two steps away from doodling Mr. & Mr. Pendragon in little swirly hearts on the margins of all his paperwork. Anyway it was not like he was getting anything done, what with all the pining.

Like right now, in the middle of a meeting when Arthur was too busy making heart-eyes at his assistant to take notes, or actually contribute any useful ideas. Someone asked Arthur his opinion on a proposal and he shook himself as though coming out of a daze.

“Pardon?” He asked, frowning deeply.

Morgana rolled her eyes, hiding her face behind one manicured hand. Perhaps one day her idiot brother would stop being such a moron and do something about his crush. Maybe after that they’d actually be able to get some work done around her.

Somehow she doubted it.


End file.
